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Civil War Day 3: Standing Among the Ashes

The war was fought, and the war was won. As the sun set on the eSports Arena, story lines drew to a close as the greatest tournament in the history of Smash 4 came to denouement. From ESAM to Dabuz, the day was full of phenomenal performances, all of which were truly worthy of the pinnacle of Smash 4 to date.

The Lunar Legend: Dabuz takes 1st place

Mr. Consistent himself, the master Rosalina and Luma player from Tri-State took the gold at 2GGC Civil War. While some players chose to shoot for the stars at this tournament, Dabuz took it upon himself to systematically pummel the opposition into the ground with the stars as his weapon of choice. As Dabuz executed player after player on his journey to grand finals, viewers around the world either groaned or cheered, depending on their disposition towards Rosa, as it became apparent with every passing moment that nothing would stand between the Rosalina and Luma phenom and first place. In the case of deadly meteor strike on Earth, the people of the world would only be able to watch as their demise hurtled towards them- so, too, did Dabuz’s competition seemingly crumble before him.

As Dabuz stood upon the pile of casualties beneath him, he waved the flags of Team Ally and Team Renegades in a spasmodic fit of victory lust. Dabuz has won his first super-major. Many would contend that Dabuz won THE super-major. Time will tell if he will continue to find victory. At this moment, however, every note he took, every replay breakdown on stream, and every clutch of his anime plush- they were all well worth it.

Redemption: Team ZeRo takes victory in crews

Though the maple leaf flew over the eSports Arena after singles, the colors of the crew battle shined a different color. In a display of tear jerking tragedy, friends cut each other down as Teams Ally and ZeRo duked it out on the main stage in the Civil War.

The crew battle was tense, with stock counts tying more than once. It was not until komoriki, the worldly iteration of Cloud himself, stepped up to the plate for Team ZeRo that the tides of the crew battle truly turned. Komo was sent in as the Mr. E cleanup crew. Dispatch Mr. E he did, albeit at the cost of a stock. Team ZeRo found themselves with five stocks to the six of Team Ally- all with Mr. R, arguably the best Sheik player in the world, making his way to the stage to contest komorikiri and Team ZeRo. In a battle of three stocks to two, the edge-guards were tense and the movement crisp. In a defining moment, with 119% to Mr. R’s 0%, Komo’s Cloud juggled Sheik into a Finishing Touch at 50%- finishing him in a merciless display of finesse.

From there, komorikiri proceeded to cut through two stocks of the final member of Team Ally, DNG.Kameme, sporting Mega Man. In doing so, he passed the baton off to the Mexican legend, MkLeo, who made quick work of the Super Fighting Robot.

In that moment, the white and blue of Team ZeRo flew high. Though they were unrepresented in the grand finals of 2GGC: Civil War, as both Fatality and Dabuz were of the maple persuasion, Team ZeRo can rest easy having earned a small measure of redemption.

ESAM Eliminates Ally at 25th Place

In what was an act of team cannibalism second in brutality only to Luhtie’s dispatching of ZeRo, Panda Global’s own ESAM demolished Ally in convincing 3-1 fashion. With what was perhaps the single greatest pop-off in the history of eSports, ESAM bared his heart to the world in a display of raw emotion. With the defeat of one of his greatest demons, with no less than his secondary character, Samus, ESAM showed the world that he is not to be forgotten. Once a commonplace name in the debate over who would finally dethrone ZeRo, many had lost faith in the charismatic Pikachu main from Florida. With a performance that both stunned and rallied the world of Sm4sh behind him, ESAM defeated the second best Smash 4 player in the world- C9.Ally- and left the stage to the tune of the bellowing chant of his name rising from the crowd.

New Blood on the Rise

Arguably the greatest story line looking to the future, the Smash 4 scene is in an era of tumult as 2GGC: Civil War draws to a close. Of the ten highest ranked players in the game, only one found themselves in top 8 at Civil War- and that man took the tournament. The rest of the players contending for the gold in top 8 either find themselves further down the list on the Panda Global Ranking, or do not see their names at all. TSM.ZeRo, the best player in the world, was eliminated at 49th by a player who has not even been playing for a full 12 months. For a game that once had a single player win 56 tournaments in a row, Civil War marks an absolutely stunning pivot point in the competitive scene. As competitors and viewers alike look forward to the remainder of 2017, and beyond, we are sure to see diversity in both players, and characters, as the scene continues to grow.

The Close

2GG has truly outdone themselves. Civil War was, to date, not only the highest skill level tournament in the history of the game, but also the most viewed. Peak viewership on the main stream reached roughly 56,000- almost double the next highest peak of any other tournament. With Civil War, 2GG has shown that story lines truly do matter for the good of the game. The thematic story line of the tournament, coupled with the story lines discussed here on Planet Hype over the course of the tournament, helped to create the greatest tournament in the history of Smash 4 as an eSport. With the announcement of both 2GGC: Nairo Saga and the Infinity Saga, 2GG has Sm4sh fans clamoring for more of the high quality entertainment and competition they provided this past weekend.

The Civil War has finished. Much blood was shed as brother fought brother, friend destroyed friend, and Rosalina and Luma won yet another major. Is this the end of the old guard of Smash 4? Is this the beginning of the era of Rosalina and Luma? I leave you all with two pieces of advice. 1) follow Planet Hype as we continue our journey into the depths of the Smash 4 story, and 2) learn how to play Meta Knight.